19th C. Kashmir Moon Shawl, India, wool: 6'2'' x 5'6'' (188 x 168 cm). "Within each of the four archways, a single tall multi-lobed plant form has a pair of flanking large boteh/paisleys and several smaller ones scattered around it. The designer of this scene was familiar with the flowering plant in a water-pot motif, which frequently appears in the earlier classic period. Notice the deliberate attempt to recreate the water-pot at the very bottom of the plant's stalk where a small light blue ornament has been placed between the minor border and plant. Without this connection, it would be impossible to assign such a meaning, or in fact any meaning, to amorphous design like this but, in the light of the importance and longevity of traditional icons and motifs in Kashmir shawl design, interpretations like this are well-supported and highly probable." Literature: Parviz Nemati, Shawls of the East, From Kerman to Kashmir, New York, 2003. This shawl is illustrated on pages 318-319.

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